This is the second in a series laying out Purdue's off-season agenda following the conclusion of the 2018 season.

Off-Season Agenda ($): Young Players

Every team deals with injury in the off-season, once surgery season kicks off in December and January.

But Purdue's concerns are pronounced this off-season, with several critical players in recovery mode.

The biggest — literally and figuratively — name on that list is defensive tackle Lorenzo Neal, the senior-to-be with the torn ACL and a player who is absolutely essential to Purdue's hoped-for improvement defensively next season. The Boilermaker defensive line will be in substantial flux, and Neal will be needed as both its pillar and its constant. ACL injuries are tricky, though.

Matt McCann, one of Purdue's few experienced returnees on the offensive line, was injured in the bowl game, potentially sidelining him for an extended period, and Purdue's running back corps' injury history is sordid.

Richie Worship missed this season due to the aftermath of his prior ACL injury the season before, and fellow upperclassman Tario Fuller's undergone a series of various surgeries and been held back by a litany of injuries. Remember: Purdue's running back fray is wide open now that its two stalwarts, D.J. Knox and Markell Jones, depart.

In the absence of health concerns, Purdue would likely be comfortable with Worship and Fuller back as upperclassmen at a key position. Now, their situations represent significant asterisks.

And that says nothing of presumed starting QB Elijah Sindelar, who was sidelined the majority of the season, his case for a potential eligibility waiver on the back end of his career. Or safety Brennan Thieneman, who broke his leg in the Music City Bowl, almost certainly setting back his chances in an open mix at safety in the spring.

So, it's not so much the volume of injuries as it is the importance of the players recovering from them.

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